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Standing in the middle of a media scrum after Saturday’s Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, a noticeably aggrieved Patrick Lefevere, manager of Etixx-Quick Step, complained that the day’s winner, Ian Stannard (Sky), had sat in the race’s “box seat” for over 30km – the implication being that Stannard only enjoyed the show, and hadn’t played a starring role. Lefevere’s lament doesn’t do justice to the Essex boy’s shrewd racing and raw power – nor does it acknowledge that even if Stannard had the box seat, it was Lefevere’s riders who booked his tickets, showed him to that seat, and all but paid his bar tab, too.

As the European racing season sets off, Team Sky are proving how well off-season training went. Geraint Thomas won in Portugal – at the Volta ao Algarve – holding onto a lead established with an outstanding solo attack on stage two, finishing just three seconds behind Tony Martin in the time trial and carefully seeing out the remaining stages.

Meanwhile, over the border, Christopher Froome was found to be in fine form at the Ruta del Sol. Stage four of the race in Andalusia saw Froome drop his rival – Alberto Contador – on the 20%-slopes of the day’s final climb.

Rapha’s developers spend three hours with each rider, working their way through every aspect of the rider’s needs and preferences. We caught up with Nico as he trained with the team in Mallorca to ask him about his kit, the fit, and his plans for the year ahead.